COLLINSVILLE/LITCHFIELD – Illinois State Police (ISP) District 11 Commander, Captain Mark Doiron, announces that the ISP will conduct Distracted Driving Enforcement Program patrols, Nighttime Enforcement (NITE) Patrols, Alcohol Countermeasure Enforcement (ACE) patrols, and Roadside Safety Checks (R.S.C) in St. Clair or Madison County, and in Montgomery County, during the month of August. These projects are funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Traffic Safety.
The Distracted Driving Enforcement program allows ISP to focus on distracted driving laws to prevent traffic deaths and serious injury crashes.
Distractions can increase a driver’s risk of being in an accident:
- Eating or drinking (non-alcoholic beverages) increases the risk by three times.
- Sending a text message increases the risk by four times.
- Reaching for an object increases the risk by eight times.
- Reading a text message can take a driver’s eyes off the road for an average of five seconds.
Officers will be on the lookout for drivers who disobey Illinois’ distracted driving laws, especially the following:
- All drivers are prohibited from reading, sending, or receiving text messages or communication, and from browsing the internet.
- All drivers are prohibited from using handheld electronic communication devices.
- Drivers under the age of 19 are prohibited from using any cellphone, even hands-free.
- All drivers are prohibited from using any cellphone, even hands-free, while in school speed zones and work zones.
- School bus drivers are not permitted to use any type of cellphone, even hands-free.
- It is illegal to use a cellphone or take photos or videos on wireless devices when driving within 500 feet of an emergency scene.
Officers working NITE patrols will be watchful for drivers who are operating vehicles in an unsafe manner, driving with a suspended or revoked driver’s license, transporting open alcoholic beverages, not properly buckled up and driving under the influence.
These nighttime patrols are designed to keep our roads safe by taking dangerous DUI offenders off the road and ensuring all vehicle occupants are buckled up.
The ACE patrols allow the ISP to target an area with saturation patrols that focus on preventing, detecting, and taking enforcement action in response to violations associated with impaired driving and illegal transportation or consumption of alcohol and other drugs.
Across the country, an average of one alcohol-related traffic death occurs every 51 minutes. Alcohol and drug impairment remain significant factors in nearly 40 percent of all fatal motor vehicle crashes in Illinois. Each year in Illinois, hundreds of lives are lost in alcohol-related crashes. Don’t risk losing your license, your car, and your freedom. The ISP has zero tolerance for impaired drivers. If you drive impaired, law enforcement will arrest you.
A roadside safety check is an effective tool for generating voluntary compliance by the motoring public. The potential to come across these checks encourages motorists to arrange designated drivers, keep their consumption of alcohol within the allowable limits, or not drive a motor vehicle after drinking. Safety checks are designed to keep our roads safe by taking dangerous DUI offenders off the road.
Officers working the R.S.C. will also be watchful for drivers who are operating vehicles in an unsafe manner, driving with a suspended or revoked driver’s license, and transporting open alcoholic beverages. This Roadside Safety Check is funded through a grant from the United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The grant is administered by the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Traffic Safety.
